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DEVIL IN DETAILS FOR 666 FIFTH

Reblogged from source | New York Post

By Steve Cuozzo
October 14, 2008 | 5:35am

IF you needed further proof that the New York Times had it wrong about law firm Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe supposedly deciding to stay at 666 Fifth Ave., here it is: Landlord Jared Kushner and his managing/leasing agent, Tishman Speyer, have brought Cushman & Wakefield in to market the space.

We first reported in August that Orrick Herrington would likely bolt its 200,000 square feet at 666 Fifth when its lease expires in early 2010, and move to 300,000 feet at Boston Properties’ Citigroup Center.

The firm needs more space that simply isn’t available at Kushner’s tower, which is full.

Then, on Oct. 1, the Times said Orrick Herrington had “suddenly pulled out” of a prospective deal at Citigroup and decided to stay at 666 Fifth for five more years.

A subsequent Times correction on Oct. 3 said the firm was “still considering” a move to Citigroup.

Even that seemed to leave wiggle room. But the tapping of Cushman’s Arthur Mirante III and Rob Lowe to find a new tenant for 666 Fifth ought to squelch that idea.

“Kushner and Tishman Speyer know Orrick is leaving in March 2010 and they want to get ready now,” a market source said.

“Orrick is on floors 16-23, which are perfectly built out for law firm use.

They’ll probably get another law firm at an asking rent of $110.”

Kushner declined comment.

But he must be glad his timing on 666 Fifth has so far been impeccable.

He sold a partial interest in the tower’s retail space to Stanley Chera and the Carlyle Group for $525 million last summer, just before the credit spigot went dry.

*Prudential Douglas Elliman is a big operation with lots of little-known parts.

Among them is the Dana Commercial Group, which helps co-op apartment buildings maximize income from retail space.

The unit just negotiated the sale of a 7,300 square-foot retail co-op at 1390 Third Ave., aka 201 E. 79th St.

The buyer, an investor group that owns Venture Stationers at 1156 Madison Ave., paid “in excess” of $20 million for the vacant storefronts, which it plans to rent out.

Dana Group’s Gary Dana, Rick Dana and Arnold Lederman worked on the deal.

All might not be lost for the Emerald Inn, the beloved Irish pub at 205 Columbus Ave. that’s losing its lease in May.

As The Post recently reported, the cozy little bar, which has been there for 66 years, can’t afford an increase to $350,000 year in rent – more than twice what it currently pays.

Owner Charlie Campbell and legions of regulars were heartbroken.

But Walker & Malloy broker Rafe Evans, who’s negotiated scores of Upper West Side retail leases, said he’s willing to help Campbell find another location nearby.

“They can only afford to be on a side street, maybe West 72nd Street,” Evans said, where rents are lower.

*
Manhattan is be coming an island of big holes in the ground.

The biggest of them is, of course, Ground Zero.

A short block away is the Broadway block that’s supposed to be home to the Fulton Street Transit Center, but is likely to remain desolate until or unless the MTA gets its act together.

The privately owned pits with unclear futures come in many shapes and sizes.

They make a stark contrast to the many marvelous projects nearing completion that were fortunate to start when times were good – like One Bryant Park, 11 Times Square, the Standard Hotel and the apartment tower 24 W. 23rd St.

The biggest collection of empty holes with no sign of any work being done is on First Avenue south of the United Nations, where Sheldon Solow won city approval earlier this year to put up six apartment buildings and one office tower.

Some day, we hope, it will all be beautiful; today, it’s a 9.8-acre expanse of nothing – making us miss, for the time being, the hulking old Con Ed plants.

Then there’s Extell’s big pit on West 57th Street across from Carnegie Hall.

It’s supposed to be a condo/hotel tower.

Extell chief Gary Barnett cleared the site more than a year ago, but no plans have been filed with the Buildings Dept.

Who knows when the former Drake Hotel site at Park Avenue and 56th Street will see something new? Harry Macklowe razed the hotel with plans for a tower that would reach to 57th Street.

But now, the Macklowe Organization is fighting to keep the parcel out of the clutches of Deutsche Bank.

With all the complications, the prime location might remain an ugly open sore for years to come.

Another big question mark is on the west side of Sixth Avenue between 30th and 31st streets, where Tessler Developments and the Chetrit Group leveled an entire blockfront.

A 30-story apartment project is apparently in the works, but – again – no plans have been filed with the Buildings Dept.